The present invention generally relates to firearms, and more particularly to a device that indicates the presence of a cartridge in the firing chamber of a pistol (i.e., a “loaded chamber”).
Although the loaded condition of a pistol's chamber is customarily and most positively checked by the user opening the action and visually observing the presence of a cartridge therein, there have been prior devices which attempt to augment this procedure by providing a mechanical device to signal the presence of a cartridge in the chamber, particularly in military pistols where opening the chamber and observing the loaded condition of same may not be practical or possible due to the need for stealth or operating in total darkness. In one type of known visual loaded chamber indicator for centerfire pistols, a small viewing window or port is cut through the sides or top of the barrel or chamber wall of a pistol to allow the presence of the cartridge casing in the barrel bore to be seen through the window by a user of the pistol. These small viewing ports, however, are susceptible to blockage by dirt, unburned gun powder residue, carbon build-up, and grease which may obscure the small ports and render these indicators useless. Another drawback is that these viewing-port-type indicators also do not provide a tactile indication to the user, and hence are not useable at night or in other darkened environments.
In another known loaded chamber indicator for centerfire pistols, a larger opening or window is cut into the side rear portion of the barrel or chamber wall. The opening extends radially inwards from outside the barrel and through the barrel's sidewall and rear face against which the rim of a cartridge abuts when a cartridge is loaded into the barrel bore. An elongated thin elastic member is provided that is fixed to the slide or bolt at one end. At the opposite end, the member has a small projection that protrudes through the window in the barrel to contact the side of the cartridge casing when a cartridge is loaded into the barrel. The member, however, is physically deflected outwards only by a very small amount by the cartridge casing. Moreover, the clip would only protrude slightly beyond the external surface of the pistol in a loaded chamber condition, and therefore lacks tactile indication capabilities. Both of these factors make it difficult for a pistol user relying upon a loaded chamber indicator to visually distinguish a change in position of the indicator between a loaded chamber condition and an empty chamber condition.
Another known elongated indicator for centerfire pistols similarly uses a cutout through the chamber wall and a small pivoting toggle. The toggle is relatively short in length and mounted in the top of the pistol about a transverse pivot pin located approximately at the center of the toggle. The front of the toggle contacts a cartridge when loaded into the chamber which displaces the toggle upwards. Although the indicator does protrude slightly beyond the top external surface of the pistol when contacted by the cartridge (i.e., a loaded chamber position), the extent of physical displacement is small due to the shortness of the indicator and centered location of the pivot point. Accordingly, the resulting exposed portion of the indicator is concomitantly small and difficult for the pistol's user to see. The exposed surface of the indicator is also too small to emplace written or symbolic indicia thereon of sufficient size to be readily legible to the user. Moreover, the pinned connection is susceptible to malfunctioning caused by breakage and sticking due to dirt and carbon residue from discharging the pistol, particularly due to the pin's proximity to the chamber area.
Accordingly, there is a need for a loaded chamber indicator that provides a more readily visible, tactile, and reliable indication of the presence a cartridge in the chamber of a pistol than the prior art.